The Average artworks

Jeroen van der Most calculated averages of the oeuvres of famous painters. His average paintings of Rembrandt and Van Gogh were covered by most large Dutch newspapers and Dutch press service ANP. The artworks were exhibited in the Amsterdam Go Gallery.

Averages are based on the color values of the pixels in pictures of the oeuvres of the Old Masters. The color values are numbers to a computer and can therefore be averaged. Results are printed and sometimes completed with paint and lacquers. Real size of the paintings is 100 x 100 centimetres.

Next to paintings, average calculations were performed on a diverse range of images. Average calculations of the faces of refugees attracted international media attention, ranging from website like The Creator's Project to Duch newswebsite NRC.

In the eyes of Van der Most the average is a beautiful though deceiving statistic. Which might be what makes it intriguing. The average visualisations can teach us the characteristics of the oeuvres of famous painters. Like Rembrandt’s steady use of central highlights and darker painting colors near the edges. But does the average still have the strength and impact of the originals?

At the same time, for Van der Most, the averages symbolise our time. An age in which art pieces, digital products and communication material can have multiple appearances at the same time. In the eyes of Van der Most, data and technology is enabling us to break the boundaries of the physical object or painting and see the full oeuvre of a painter, at once.

Old masters have always fascinated Van der Most. Out of admiration for the skills and technique of the painters of the past, but also because of the massive adoption of old master imagery into contemporary culture and the Amsterdam tourist industry. When does art turn into cliche? And real into fake?